Lennox Lewis eager for Fury vs Joshua this year - and believes 'The Gypsy King' already has an advantage

Lennox Lewis has hailed Tyson Fury as the world’s No1 heavyweight and says Anthony Joshua can no longer shy away from him.

A British showdown between Fury and Joshua this summer is the fight everyone wants to see but the newly-crowned WBC champion expects his next opponent to be Deontay Wilder, who has 30 days in which to activate a rematch clause.

Lewis, however, says Fury-Joshua is the must-have fight this year. “Fury can lay claim to being the best and all the focus is on him,” said Lewis, the last undisputed heavyweight champion of the world.

“And he’ll be better for having boxed Wilder a second time and got great knowledge from him.

“Joshua has to finally box at this top level against these guys — although Fury has the advantage of knowing there’s no one better than him.”

Eddie Hearn, Joshua’s promoter, is also pushing for a Battle of Britain. He said: “I don’t think anyone wants to see a third fight [between Fury and Wilder], it was that conclusive. But we will see if he [Wilder] exercises that.

“Our preference is to go straight into it because it would be undisputed. We’ll never get the opportunity to do it again with two Brits.”

Former British heavyweight David Haye, meanwhile, fears a clash between Fury and Joshua will not take place until next year.

“To get one mega fight a year everyone is happy — you can’t get too greedy. Other guys deserve their chance.”

Frank Bruno hailed Fury as “an inspiration” for overcoming his mental health issues to reach the summit again. The former heavyweight champion, whose own struggles with mental health have been well documented, added: “I’m proud of him.”